Fall Too Fast, No One Can Stop Me
by zayanatlin
Summary: Zig/Maya. Wrote this awhile ago.


It took a lot of convincing to get the Matlins to let Zig come with them to pick up Maya at the airport… well, not as much the Matlins, as convincing Katie. She still thought that he was a no-good dirt bag, because of the whole "kissing Maya while still dating Tori" thing.

Zig kind thought he was a dirt bag for that whole thing, too. Especially, because of how it ended.

But Maya has seemed to forgive him, and didn't think the Cam thing was his fault. Zig still felt guilty- you probably never get over trying to steal the dead kid's girlfriend- but Maya had even agreed to wait for him.

She'd gone to Paris not long after, and Zig hadn't been able to go, of course, because his family didn't have the money to send him on trips like that. So he'd just sat at home, waiting for her to come back.. or text him.

Why hadn't she texted him? She didn't even text him once. It made him nervous, but it wasn't like he owned Maya. She was allowed to have fun, and Zig wanted her to maybe get her mind off things for awhile.

Plus, his deal with Tristan had made things a bit more comfortable. Tristan hadn't really wanted to (his feelings towards Zig were still blatantly obvious) but he'd agreed to do. Also making up some bullshit story about just wanting her be his best friend, because Tori had moved away. It was genius, and Zig knew Maya would do anything for her friends.

Once Tristan got off the plane alone, looking dejected and upset, Zig started to really worry. He caught his not-really-friend-but-still's eye, and Tristan shook his head sadly.

"You're an unlucky man, Zig." Tristan said sadly and slowly as he walked past. Zig's stomach dropped. "I'm sorry."

Then he saw her, Maya.. in all her Maya-ness. Blonde hair that curled in the front, but just frizzy at the back, and her glasses that made her look… innocent.

But she wasn't innocent, she wasn't the Maya that Zig had fallen for. He'd thought that she was just reacting to Cam's suicide… but no. That wasn't right- that wasn't what this was.

He could see clearly now, as Maya left the wedged between two other boys, smiling as though she didn't have a care in the world. The one boy, seemed as though he had lots of money to his name, whispered something into her ear and she leaned against his shoulder.

Then the sight of Zig, standing with her family, caught her attention. Her eyes seemed to wide to twice the natural size and her body stiffened.

"Z-Zig?" Maya gasped, pulling away the snobby-looking rich kid. "Zig.." She was going to try and explain, Zig could tell from the look on her face.

But he didn't want to hear what she had to say. He didn't want to hear her say anything to him ever again.

Tears stinging his eyes, Zig turned on his heel and practically ran out of the airport.

XXXX

Zig didn't really know where he was going, since he was several kilometers away from home and had no way of getting there.

He just knew that there was no way he could sit in the backseat with Maya the whole way, and pretend that everything was okay when- in fact- nothing was okay.

How could she do that? Sure, they weren't exactly "dating", but that shouldn't have mattered! If she knew that he was back home waiting for him, then she should have at least had the decency to text him that she was not only ready for a relationship.. that she was ready for a relationship with somebody that wasn't him.

"Zig, come on- wait." That wasn't Maya calling after him…. it was…

Katie?

"What.." Zig started wiping at his tears, embarrassed that she could see him crying.

"I'm really sorry." Katie shrugged, as though she was just an embarrassed about the entire thing as he was. "But you're not allowed to walk back by yourself. If you're too uncomfortable.. I'll sit in the backseat with Maya."

"Why are you being nice to me all of a sudden? I thought you hated me." Zig hadn't meant to snap at Katie, he really hadn't. His emotions were just completely shot and he didn't understand why the universe still seemed to be against him. If it was because of the Cam thing, he didn't know how he could apologize any better than he already had. "I thought you hated me."

"We all make mistakes, Zig. Do things we regret," Katie said slowly, her eyes clouding over… clearly thinking of something different than the situation at hand. "It doesn't make you a bad person."

XXXXX

The car ride back to the Novaks' place was awkward and silent, but once Zig got out of the car… Maya did, too.

"Zig, it was nothing!" Maya said, grabbing his arm.

Zig wanted to melt into her touch, accept her statement and go on with the way things were before.

But, no. Things can't be the way they were before. He couldn't play second fiddle to every boy who entered Maya's life anymore.

So he jerked his arm out of her grip and moves towards the door again.

"No, Zig, wait, please." Maya was scrambling, her words hardly making any sense. She was begging and it hurt Zig to hear her. He just needed to get inside, get away from her.

"Can we just go back to before, Zig, please?" Maya was sobbing, actually sobbing, and seemed unsure of what to do with her hands. She kept reaching for him, and then letting her hands fall back to her side without actually having touched him at all.

"No, Maya!" Zig replied, louder than her intended. "Before didn't work." Maya jumped back as though Zig had actually slapped her, and he felt a pang in his chest at the hurt and shocked look on her face. But she needed to hear these things. She needed to know that things needed to change, with Zig, with her family…

Maya didn't need to change- she just needed to change back.

"I can't keep being your second best." Zig said, trying to sound strong, but the break his voice giving him away.

"Zig.." Maya started, her head shaking. "That's not.. It's not.. You're not.. Zig!"

"I am, Maya, and I have been for a long time." Zig took a deep breath to calm himself before continuing. Zig didn't think he'd ever been so angry, and certainty not at Maya. This was worse than her 'thing' with the Harry jerk, because Zig understood that; Maya had been hurting, and in denial about her pain. THIS, though… this Zig couldn't understand for the life of him.

"I was second best to Cam, you told me that enough times. I understand that, and I would never judge you for it." Zig's breathing was heavy and he couldn't look at the sobbing blonde girl standing in front of him. "But now, I'm second best to some douche bag you met in Paris?"

"You're— n-n-ot" Maya voice sounded as though she was completely broken, but Zig had gotten this far- he needed to say these things, he needed her to know.

"I just don't know what you want from me." Zig finally attempted, trying to sum up the millions of emotions that were racing through his body and mind.

"Maybe I wanted you to fight me." Maya said in a small voice, almost too small for Zig to hear. He finally turned to face her fully, all the emotions besides rage and something else- a little something that he couldn't put his finger on- left his body.

Was she SERIOUS?!

"FIGHT FOR YOU? What the FUCK do you think I've been doing!" Zig wanted to rip his hair out and was seconds away from just going inside and ignoring Maya for the rest of his life.

"But you d-di-didn't at first. You ch-chose Tori, ev-even though she sa-said that I li-liked you!" Maya's entire body was shaking, Zig could see that and he was standing at least 3 feet away from her. "Y-you took the ea-easy way out. Y-you didn't fight."

"Really. REALLY!?" Zig couldn't control his temper now, he was beyond furious. "What about when I wanted to break up with Tori because I LIKED YOU and you told me to stay with her? What about when I stayed by you through everything with Cam… WHAT do you call that Maya!?"

"You REJECTED me!" Maya snapped, before sinking backwards.

"I already told you why I did that." Zig's voice got cold, heartless even… he could hear it himself and by the flash of hurt that crossed Maya's face, she could hear it too.

She stepped towards him, resting her hand on forced himself to stay stiff, to hold his ground.

"Please.. I did-didn't do anything with him. Plus, I think he-he's gay. Ca-can we just…" Maya moved her face so that they're noses were touching, but Zig couldn't bring himself to give her what she was asking for.

He wasn't going to let her fuck around with his feelings anymore.

So he pulled away, went inside and slammed the door in her face.. sliding down it to the floor.

Hearing her sob on the other side of the door, and then her foot steps fading as she went towards her parents and sister in car, Zig figured out what the other emotion was, the slight feeling that hadn't faded, even in the hype of his anger.

It was love.


End file.
